


Don't Let It Hold You Down

by BatsisMolly



Category: Batfamily - Fandom, Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Adventure, Angst, Batsis Reader - Freeform, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Other, Reader-Insert
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-05
Updated: 2018-10-05
Packaged: 2019-07-25 17:13:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,554
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16202006
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BatsisMolly/pseuds/BatsisMolly
Summary: Batsis Reader Insert where reader is adopted by Bruce after the death of her family. After she's adopted the Batfam all think she's quiet and doesn't like to talk, but she's actually very observant and has learned not to open up so easily. This is a story about the reader finding who caused the death of her family and learning that it's okay to let people in again.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! So I'm a HUGE fan of the Batfamily, and I love to kinda just imagine what it would be like if I was in their universe. So I came up with this story one day and I figured somebody else out there might also enjoy it! I can't promise that I'll update at a given amount of time, I'm a very busy senior with a lot of college applications I need to do, but I'll try my best!  
> Also, I understand that not everybody is going to like my writing, but if you have to comment about how bad you think it is then try not to be so mean about it. I know it's hard to see behind the screen, but there's an actual person who's feeling you can hurt. And besides, you'll just be waisitng your time. I write for myself and nothing's going to change that. If you don't like it, feel free to stop reading, I won't get offended. Anyways, here's the first chapter! I hope you like it!

You were running through your house, chasing your older sister who had just put a streak of paint on your cheek as you attempted to paint a picture for your parents this Christmas. You ran through the halls, bouncing off walls, sliding down a banister to catch her as you screamed playful banter. "I hate you!", you screamed. "Oh please you adore me!", she countered. "No I don't! Even when I was little I knew I didn't like you! Why do you think I broke your favorite crown and hid it under your bed!" you said smiling. At this, your sister Riley stopped and turned to you, a hand over her heart and her mouth ajar. "You said that was an accident!" She said with hurt, long sense healed, on her face. You giggled as you tackled her to the ground and painted 2 streaks on her own cheek. "(Y/N)! That's so not fair!" She said laughing as well. 

"Can you help me with my painting now?", you were horrible at painting, and your sister was like a goddess, even if she was 18 and you were 16. She had already gotten 3 awards out of all of Gotham for some her work, and one was complimented by the commissioner himself. "Fine, but you better pay attention this time, I am not spending an hour with you so you can learn to blend" she laughed a little as she spoke, and descended the stairs with you hot on her heels. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was Christmas and you just spent an amazing dinner with your happy family, laughing as your dog tried to get through the wreckage of wrapping paper. He was trying to eat a balloon, but it bounced off his nose at each impact. You never finished the painting for your parents, but it became a shared work between you and your sister. Although it wasn't finished, it was just missing a couple things that needed more time. You however, carved a bird out of stone for Riley. 

Although you weren't a good painter, you were really good with sculptures. But unlike your sister, you kept them hidden, mostly because you were self conscious. But one day your sister found them, and she fawned over each of them, making you feel more special than you had in awhile. After that you kept them a secret because it felt like a special bond between the two of you was created. 

The bird was small, so it could be carried with you easily, and it was made out of some marble. She wasn't as good as you at carving, but you still admired her craftsmanship. This was the first one you ever gave someone, and it made you so happy to see how much she admired and understood what it meant to the both of you. 

But your happiness was cut short when an explosion was heard outside, and the ground shook. The windows broke from the force, and hot debris fell to the floor. You didn't live in the best neighborhood, but it could have been worse. You were kind of getting used to sounds of explosions (you live in Gotham for crying out loud, things like this aren't really uncommon), but this was the first time that something came in to your family's sanctuary instead of out. And the mistake was that you all hesitated. 

The hot debris caught onto the wrapping paper, and the room was engulfed in flames not a minute later. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You're sitting in the ruins of you home, still clutching the bird you made your sister in one hand, and her own limp hand in the other. You looked at their still corpses and let out another heart wrenching sob before you realized someone was trying to release your grip on your sister. You fought to stay with them, clinging to their bodies, begging and pleading for them to let you go. But in the end they were removed from your grasp, and part of your soul was taken with them. 

 

5 months after the fire 

You were put in an orphanage 2 days after the accident, still grieving your family. But by the second day you realized that showing just a drop of weakness gave the other children a target for their violence. So as the days progressed you began to shut away the pain, pushing it to the back of your head, making your mind numb but alert. One problem at a time, you told yourself. Fights were daily, and when Bruce found you a month later and took you to the manor, you thought you could finally grieve. Boy were you wrong. 

You knew you were safe at the manor, but you didn't trust your new 'family' with your feelings as much as they thought you did. You knew who Bruce was, and who your new 'brothers' were, but you never told them. You simply rolled along with their lie.

You eventually found out that it was your 'brother', Dick, who attempted to comfort you after your other 'brother' Jason pulled you from their bodies. You don't blame Jason for removing you, but you still wish he didn't. 

The rest of your new 'family' were out fighting some baddies in Gotham, and you knew Alfred wasn't down in the Batcave because he had to fix some situation at Wayne Enterprise. So you figured it was the perfect opportunity to do some research. 

The fire that killed your family wasn't an accident and you knew it, but you weren't going to tell the Batfamily, this was your business, not theirs. Thankfully you were able to take videos of Tim hacking, studying the methods every chance you got, because of how much he zones out during his cases. It defiantly made getting into the bat computer easier too,You did have to hack into some more video cameras and other systems to get what you needed though. And when you found everything you could find without being on the field, you printed it, wiped the memory thoroughly and made sure to destroy any evidence of your being there. 

 

8 months after the fire 

After excessive exercise and training, which you performed when the batfamily was gone or busy (which was like all the time), and when you were able to sneak around the house without getting noticed by even the butler when everyone was home, you knew you were ready. 

That night you slipped out your bedroom door in a black hoodie and black jeans and made your way down to the grandfather clock. Just as you were about to open the secret door, you heard footsteps coming down the hall. You slid into the shadows in the corner, manipulating the lack of light to hide yourself. You watched as Damian and Tim walked towards the clock, arguing as always.

"She's a waste of space, Drake"  
"No she's not, she's been here for almost 7 months and you still refuse to get over your jealousy of her"  
"I'm not jealous Drake! I simply don't care for her. Other than her parents untimely death and her time in that orphanage, can you really say you know her either"  
"No bu-"  
"She refused to speak for the first 2 weeks of her stay here and then proceeded to speak in fragments for the next 2."  
"Yea bu-"  
"She still refuses to have a full conversation with anyone. Including Pennyworth. And like you said, it's been almost 7 months."  
"Ok but-"

Their argument continued as the door closed and the clock returned to its original place. But you didn't mind what they were talking about, you weren't comfortable with them either, and within the first week staying at the manor, your mind became numb again, protecting your emotions and focusing on what it would take to accomplish your goal. You just wanted your real family back. You looked down at the small rock you held in your hand, and felt a new surge of determination.

You waited 15 minutes, and then opened the grandfather clock and disappeared into the cave. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You weren't stupid. You knew you couldn't take a motorcycle out of the cave without the rest of the batfamily noticing. There would be a tracker in it somewhere, and you didn't want to risk them finding your location and breaking your cover. So you took a comm link, set it on mute, then walked out of the cave. 

Assuming that security systems go down around the cave when they leave and enter, there would be only a small amount of time to get in and out undetected. Hence why you took the comm link, to know when they would be heading back. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was dark and muggy. But I mean it's Gotham, so what else is new? You were in the East End District, near Crime Alley. Batman and the rest of the family would be patrolling near the police station, in case the Commissioner needed them. On the off chance that you did run into someone other than your run of the mill thugs and rapists, it would probably be Catwoman or Red Hood (but Red would probably stay with the family). 

You stuck to the shadows on the rooftops. You originally planned to stay down on the streets, but you knew you'd have a better advantage up here.

You were almost to your destination when you saw it. A patch that somehow seemed darker than the rest. 

'Damnit',you thought, 'how the hell have I already caught Catwomans attention?'


	2. Cat and Mouse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter the reader has to get away from Catwoman before she tries to figure out who the reader is. Considering she hasn't had people to physically fight with since her time in the orphanage, and none of the kids would have been nearly as good as Catwoman anyways, the reader must find a different way to escape form her situation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, second chapter is all done. By the way, sorry if I totally gross you out. If any of y'all don't like bugs, this is your fair warning. Also, I'll try and post again soon, but for now, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

You stayed as still as you could. It was your first time in the field, and you already knew something was bound to go wrong. You just thought you'd have more than an hour at least.

But there she was. Catwoman. Crouched in the darkness examining her pray, unfortunately, that would be you. You felt her eyes size up your outfit, and knew she picked you off as a newbie as soon her body relaxed. As if she was upset that she wouldn't get to have more of a challenge, but amused that she could still have some fun. 

And as you positioned yourself in what you thought of as the worst defensive stance ever, you thought, 'She's too cocky. Let's see if I can make it her weakness.'

"Oh Kitten, you don't want to play with the big cats. You might get your claws clipped", Catwoman said. 

You stayed silent. With someone like Catwoman you knew silence would be your best defense, her cunning and tricky ways would surely catch you in a tight spot.

You could tell by the way she cocked her head to the side that she was curious about your silence. And when she stepped out of the shadows, you could finally see her full get up. 

As usual she stuck to her skin tight, black one-piece. But this one had purplish pink cat eye goggles over her cowl, and she wasn't wearing heels anymore, she was wearing black combat boots. Naturally her bullwhip combined with cat-o'-nine-tails whip was in hand, but the end stayed wrapped around her waist. As if she wasn't sure if it was worth getting out. 

"I think it's time for your catnap Kitten. Why don't you scamper on home and we can pretend like this never happened?", she purred. 

'Well I don't see any other way out of this.' you thought. So you gave Catwoman a curt nod, and with a running start, leapt to the building adjacent from you. 

You knew she was still following, not trusting you at all. So you continued on for about 2 blocks before you crept onto the 5th level of an old abandoned apartment complex. 

You snaked your way into one of the rooms on the far North and partly East side of the building. The room looked older than the outside of the building. 

A rusty broken furnace sat in front of the window, which was completely shattered. It had 2 boards of wood nailed across the top, like someone just got lazy and figured no one cared anyways. The floor boards were broken and molding, like the wall. All the furniture was destroyed: the couch (that surely held some family of rats), the kitchen table and chairs (probably infested with termites), and all the knocked over picture frames with the water damaged photos laying on the floor. 

You couldn't help but think of how close it was to a representation of your life these past couple months. Old memories washed away, support and shelter of a true home crumbling. But you didn't have time to dwell on the past, Catwoman was still looking for you. 

You spotted a rusted fridge in the kitchen to your left, and quietly made your way towards it. You opened it as fast as you could without it creaking, and after ushering out the rats in silent disgust, you climbed in and shut the door. 

You stayed completely still, listening for the creek in the floorboards or the scurry of mice in annoyance of another visitor. And when you knew she was right outside the door, more than likely inspecting the antique thing, you barged open the door into her. 

A loud audible bang echoed through the complex as it made contact with her head, and a dull thud followed as she fell back onto the floor. Thankfully, you had caught her by surprise and managed to land a pretty good hit. Unfortunately she wasn't unconscious, just dazed and kinda pissed.

You jumped out of the fridge holding two old jars, both containing some unknown liquid that became the home for some larvae. You threw one at her, and she caught it when she got back up. But due to her dazed state she failed to see that the top was opened. 

So when she caught it at the curved angle it was thrown at, the force of the throw stopped holding the lid in place, and the larvae came pouring out of the jar, all over the front of her uniform. 

"Ahh!" she exclaimed as she jumped back, trying desperately to get the bugs off of her. 

And just as you had hoped, her foot landed in the hole she made in the rotted wood when she fell earlier, getting stuck in the jagged layers. 

"Why you little pest!!!", Catwoman roared. 

In the deepest most unrecognizable voice you could muster, you said, "Sorry lady, I have a curfew!!!" . And sprinted out of range of her whip, and then the room altogether. 

Stupid thing to say? Maybe. Played off as a newbie thing to say? Definitely. Chances of getting killed by Catwoman regardless? Getting higher. 

You exited in the far South East side of the building and made your way down to the 2nd floor. There, you exited onto the street on the far South West side and made your way to the alleyways. 

She wouldn't be far behind, and you lost the high ground. Hopefully, throwing her off. Plus on your transition from the South East side of the building, you yeeted the extra jar you had to the roof of the other building. Hoping she might think you dropped it when you tried to get to the next roof. 

You snaked through the shadows as quickly and quietly as possible. She had to be out of the building by now, and you needed a temporary hiding place. 

There was a huge trash bin for the old hotel 20 feet in front on you. You had passed about 3 of these already, but this one had to be in the worst shape and provided the smallest shade. 

'Perfect. Just enough room for me to fit, and torn up enough to make it look like it couldn't be a hiding place' you thought to yourself. 

You had just managed to fully sink into the small but dark shadow the trash bin provided when you saw a shadow on the wall of the alley. It was Catwoman alright. She stood on the roof of the building next to your head and was angrily searching the alley for you. You noticed her shadows head stopped turning when it was looking down around where you were. And you thought for sure you were a goner. But then you got maybe the only good luck you got all night. 

A blood curdling scream exploded from an alley down the block. Bouncing off each object, it kept going, an ultimate plea for help. 

Now Catwoman may be a thief, and as some would say a villain, but she would never turn her back when a girl screamed like that in Gotham. She hesitated in anger for her bad night, and when another shorter lived scream made its way to us again, she sprinted off after it. 

You quickly got out of your hiding spot, when you knew she was at least 2 buildings down, and sprinted your ass out of the East side of Gotham. 

No way were you gonna stay in her territory when she was pissed and hunting you. You may have been in the clear for a couple hours, but you would have to be constantly moving if you had a chance of escaping her. And it's like you said, you have a curfew. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Your interaction and the following chase took up almost an hour. You figured the Batfam wouldn't be heading back so soon, but you decided to check anyways. So you turned on the comm link in your ear and kept it on mute.

"-TAKE THAT BACK TODD!!!", Damian screeched on the comm. 

Man you were happy you put yourself on mute. If you hadn't, you would have been immediately caught when you yelped and winced. 

"I don't know Demon, sometimes it's good to hear the truth.", Jason replied cockily. 

"Guys-", Dick attempted. 

"The truth? Hypocrite! If you insist on talking about truth then perhaps you should accept some of your own!!" 

"Ok guys I really think-" 

"Oh yea! Come at me munchkin!!" 

"Why you-"

"Can we talk this-"

"Mommy's little boy!" 

"I can't concentrate!" 

"Imbecile!!!" 

"Come on guys, we-" 

"Demon!!"

"I need more coffee for this." 

"Tin head!!"

You were about to turn it off when Bruce finally interrupted in his deep gravely voice. The feared Batman voice you presumed, considering it got them to shut up for a second. 

"That's enough. If you two won't cooperate then we'll cut the night short." 

The sound of a sneer and a gasp followed. Closely followed by one direct "Yes father" from Damian and a more reluctant "Yeah whatever" from Jason. 

Even from the short time that you've actually seen Jason interact with the rest of the family, you knew this current peace agreement wouldn't last. Once more annoyed with your 'family', you began to head back to the cave. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You managed to hitch a ride from the back of an 18 wheeler. Holding onto the handle until you had to get off. You would have gone on the roof, but it would have been harder to get down from. Besides, there's no one else on these back roads at night. 

You made it back to where you assumed the security for the cave began and waited in a tree. Where you stayed until you heard Batman announce they would be going home, after like the fourth argument since he threatened them. 

When they were in close enough range for the security to turn off, you sprinted into the cave. Thankfully, they were far enough away that you had time to put the comm link back, which you had thoroughly cleaned when you were siting in the tree, and erased any other evidence of you being there. You had almost made it to the top of the steps when you heard the clock door begin to open. Once more, you quickly sank into the shadows of the cave wall behind you, hoping you didn't smell bad enough to give you away. 

Alfred entered and began his descent into the cave with a plate of freshly baked cookies in his hands. 

'They smell like heaven...' but you had to push that thought out of your mind as he walked past you. When he had made it about 10 feet in front of you, you had officially creeped out of the door. And it closed after you could catch the faint sound of the Batmobiles tires screeching to a halt. 

You sprinted up the stairs into your room and quickly undressed. Then you soaked a wash cloth under the sink and managed to clean off mostly all of the smell from your body. Finally, after disposing your clothes in bag under your mattress, you changed into your pajamas and slipped under the covers. 

You lay there for a while. Just thinking. Thinking about how pissed Catwoman was, and how close to screwed you were on your first night. And wondering if she was still looking for you. Thinking about how your main objective for the night was destroyed by your horrible fortune and your 'family's' problems. Not for the first time, you were disappointed with them for ruining yet another thing. 

And with that final thought, your eyes slid shut, and you fell into the dark abyss of sleep.


End file.
